Paths to a malaria vaccine illuminated by parasite genomics.

Paths to a malaria vaccine illuminated by parasite genomics.
Trends Genet. 2015 Jan 22;
Authors: Conway DJ
Abstract
More human death and disease is caused by malaria parasites than by all other eukaryotic pathogens combined. As early as the sequencing of the first human genome, malaria parasite genomics was prioritized to fuel the discovery of vaccine candidate antigens. This stimulated increased research on malaria, generating new understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms of infection and immunity. This review of recent developments illustrates how new approaches in parasite genomics, and increasingly large amounts of data from population studies, are helping to identify antigens that are promising lead targets. Although these results have been encouraging, effective discovery and characterization need to be coupled with more innovation and funding to translate findings into newly designed vaccine products for clinical trials.
PMID: 25620796 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Source: Trends in Genetics : TIG - January 22, 2015 Category: Genetics & Stem Cells Authors: Conway DJ Tags: Trends Genet Source Type: research